L-alpha-glyceryl phosphoryl choline (GPC hereunder) expressed by the following chemical formula I is a substance known to be used to improve brain function and treat dementia.

The conventional method of preparing L-alpha-glyceryl phosphoryl choline is largely divided into the pure synthetic method and the extraction method in which the choline is extracted from recithin, a by-product of bean. For example, the methods introduced in such patents as European patent No. 486.100, Italian Patent No. 1,243,724, and Italian Patent No. 1,247,496 are the pure synthetic method, and the methods introduced in such patents as U.S. Pat. No. 5,250,719, British Patent No. 2,058,792, and European Patent No. 217,765 are the recithin extraction method. The conventional GPC prepared with these methods is obtained at the liquid state containing a considerable amount of water.
Meanwhile, the method for crystallization of the above-mentioned liquid L-alpha-glyceryl phosphoryl choline is also known. First of all, in J. Am. Chem. Soc. 70, 1394-1399 (1948), it was reported that the water-containing GPC prepared with the pure synthetic method could be solidified from the alcohol solution, but the detailed crystallization method and the crystalline structure were not mentioned.
In Korean Patent No. 262281 (registration date: Apr. 29, 2000), a new method of preparing GPC was introduced: First, GPC was synthesized by the alcoholysis deacylation reaction in a reactor containing a basic ion exchange resin and the lipophilic impurities are removed by using a non-polar adsorption resin. Then, the above-mentioned GPC was dissolved in methanol and n-butanol whose amount was 20 times the methanol solution was added to the methanol solution. Finally, the total solution was concentrated in vacuum, cooled, and filtered to recover an anhydrous form of crystal. In this method, however, though only the formation of very hygroscopic fine crystals was reported, details on the crystalline structure were not mentioned.
And, in Korean Patent No. 966,627 (registration date: Jun. 20, 2010), a method of preparing GPC hydrochloride, as expressed by chemical formula 2, by using a crystallization solvent composed of C1-C6 alcohols, C1-C6 ketones and their mixtures, was introduced but again the crystalline structure was not mentioned.

Like this, though efforts have been made to crystallize GPC and the possibility of crystallization has been proposed, details on the crystallization conditions or the crystalline structure has not been mentioned. And the raw material of crystalline GPC available for industrial applications has not produced yet.